Myositis Patients at High Risk of Opportunistic Infections
Among patients with systemic rheumatic diseases, the highest incidence of opportunistic infections was seen in those with polymyositis/dermatomyositis (PM/DM), Taiwanese researchers found.
News
One-Third of Psoriatic Arthritis Patients Will Need Joint Surgery
Dannish study has shown that one-third of psoriatic arthritis (PsA) will have joint surgery that that PsA patients have twice the rate of joint surgery when compared with the general population.
Warfarin Superior to Xarelto in Antiphospholipid Syndrome
A 3 year, multicenter, European, study shows that rivaroxaban was inferior to warfarin in preventing thrombosis in patients with antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) according to the Annals of Internal Medicine. Thus despite the inconvenience of warfarin, it remains the best option for patients with APS.
Stress and the Risk of Incident Inflammatory Arthritis
A prospective analysis of newly diagnosed, inflammatory arthritis (IA) patients suggests that perceived distress (stress) increases the odds of incident IA.
Hydroxychloroquine Blood Levels May Predict Future Retinopathy
A study of 527 patients receiving daily hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) concluded that hydroxychloroquine blood levels may predict future HCQ retinopathy.
ACR 2018 - Day 1 Report
Highlights from Tuesday and Wednesday (days 3 and 4) from the ACR annual meeting include: the important and impactful abstracts covered by the Rheumatology Roundup session; upadacitinib clinical trials; and the baricitinib CV and VTE safety analysis.
Juvenile Arthritis at Risk for Coronary Artery Disease
Arthritis Care & Research reports that juvenile arthritis (JA) patients may have a higher risk if coronary artery disease (CAD) in adulthood.
RheumNow Podcast – When You’re Hot You’re Hot (10.11.19)
Dr. Jack Cush delivers select commentary on select news and journal articles from the past week on RheumNow.com.
Long Delays for Inflammatory Arthritis Patients
The National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society's (NRAS) annual audit has identified significant treatment delays for patients with suspected early inflammatory arthritis could result in unnecessary harm.
Sprifermin Benefits Cartilage Loss but not Symptoms in Knee Osteoarthritis
Intra-articular sprifermin given to patients with symptomatic and radiographic knee osteoarthritis has been shown to significantly improve total femorotibial joint cartilage thickness after 2 years, but without significant clinical benefits. Which begs the question, why is there a disconnect between radiographic disease modification (cartilage thickness) and symptomatic improvement?
Declining Trends in Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic Autoantibody–Associated Vasculitis Mortality in the USA
Annals of Internal Medicine reports that age-adjusted mortality rates for antineutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody–associated vasculitides (AAV) have improved over time - with a decline of nearly 2 percent per year in the United States from 1999 to 2017. Nevertheless, long-term outcomes continue to lag behind mortality rates of the general population.
